Surrender To Me
by Gamebird
Summary: General Hux's tortured body is delivered to the Resistance by a small, surrendering force of the First Order who were fortifying a mine on a distant planet. Hux remains defiant even as Poe tries to help him, refusing to accept aid and comfort from the enemy. But even the most stubborn heart can be won over.
1. No Surrender

**A/N: My point-of-view character in this story is whoever is with Hux, which is why it swaps back and forth between Poe, Rose, and Finn. Thanks to sunnyangelflowers for the prompt and the encouragement! This story is dedicated to her.**

Tags: Hurt/comfort, whump, slow burn, gingerpilot, background FinnRose as an established relationship, reconciliation, Poe thinks it's dub-con but it's not, it's so not

Poe wasn't even certain that was General Hux. His face was bloody and eyes swollen shut. His hands were twisted, fingers broken. He'd been stripped to an undershirt and trousers – belt, boots, and jacket gone – even socks. Maybe he hadn't been stripped to this, but instead it was all he'd been allowed to put on? His hair was matted with blood and he was covered with dust like he'd been rolled through it. Or dragged, which was what was happening now.

Two sweaty miners brought him in front of Poe and dropped him there, where Hux collapsed in the unguarded way of someone unable to support themselves. Or unaware. Hux made a surprised noise and moved slightly at the impact. He wasn't unaware, which meant he knew how much pain he was in.

Poe had jumped just a little when it happened. He had expected that they'd pull Hux to his feet and present him. Instead, they'd dropped him like a crate of parts. Poe had been busy realizing those weren't combat injuries and the 'surrender' he'd been given by Lt. Wrayner of the First Order was … complicated. He wasn't even sure which one the lieutenant was. The only one in anything close to a uniform was Hux and most of that was missing. "What happened?" Poe asked, a flat tone to his voice.

A man dressed no differently than the others spoke. "He wouldn't cooperate. He wouldn't surrender. I suppose he still hasn't. But the surrender is legal. The First Order renounces their claim on Hemmerjan. He's not in charge anymore, due to 'incapacity', as you can see."

"Yeah, I see that," Poe said, his voice even flatter. At his feet, Hux was shifting somewhat, trying to get to his knees.

"You said you wanted him. There he is. He would have had us fight to the end," Wrayner explained, almost boasting as he looked for some validation he wasn't getting. "We said nah. We all renounce our membership in the Order. Those were the terms."

Poe had this slimy feeling like he'd made a very bad mistake in negotiating. Or he'd missed something important, because he didn't understand why they'd do something like this to one of their own. He knelt next to the broken man. "Those were the terms." He put a hand on Hux's elbow to help him, but Hux jerked it away.

"I … do not … surr … ender," Hux said.

"Yeah, I heard," Poe said quietly. "Be quiet."

Wrayner asked, "When are you going to execute him? I guess it's not as good as if he were recognizable, but you know how it goes."

Poe looked up at him as Hux, unaided, pulled himself slowly to a wobbly sitting position. "You need to get going, Lieutenant. Processing is over there."

Wrayner lifted his chin. He seemed to be making some kind of show for the rest. "I'm not a lieutenant anymore. I'm Hemmerjani now."

Poe looked from Hux's smashed face to Wrayner's unmarked one. "I don't care what you call yourself. You're a monster for doing this."

"I'm a rich monster, thanks to you." Wrayner gave a low laugh and headed off. Hux sent bloody spittle in the man's general direction and Poe had to agree with the sentiment.

Poe looked back and forth at the several people who had come forward with him to accept the surrender. The Hemmerjani natives who were working with them looked indifferent or even pleased. Most of the Resistance members showed more empathy. It was one thing to fight someone, wound them, or even kill them in battle. It was another to torture them and a step further than that to be tortured by one's own people.

Poe sighed and looked at the man in front of him. Hux was feeling of his fingers, moving them slightly and trying to get them into a more natural position. Poe said, "The First Order didn't rough me up this bad when you guys had me. Come on. Let's get you somewhere that we can get you some first aid."

"I do not nnn- require aid," Hux said in the same careful, laborious manner as when he'd spoken before. His lips were split, nose probably broken. Poe would be surprised if he wasn't missing some teeth.

"Can you stand?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Come on, then. I'm going to get you to … somewhere."

"I … refuse."

Poe leaned close to him. He used his most charming voice to say, "General Hux? Cooperate with me, okay?"

"No."

Poe leaned back with a wincing grin and a stifled laugh. "Buddy, you're barely conscious." He knew it wasn't funny, but the guy's stubborn determination was touching.

"No."

Poe looked over his shoulder at Finn, who rolled his eyes and circled to Hux's other side. Finn squatted as low as he could go, lifted Hux's arm, and inserted himself under it. Hux swayed away from him, but Poe copied Finn's action on the other side so Hux had nowhere to go. "Up," Finn said. Poe stood with him. Between them, they brought Hux to his feet. He went limp.

"Did you just pass out, or are you being difficult?" Poe asked, cocking his head to try to see. Hux's head was lolling.

"I think he's out," Finn said. "Let's move him."

Hux stayed unconscious for most of their trip to what passed as a medical area in their forward base. The Resistance was here at the request of the oppressed native population, who wished to expel the First Order. Those natives who had joined them in the effort were only loosely under Poe's command. Few would fight, but had lent housing and infrastructure support to allow the Resistance to carry the battle. As a result, Poe had put all the Resistance members into combat roles. The medical area was run by natives.

The chief doctor and two nurses came to them immediately. "What happened? Who is he?" She glanced down him, looking at the First Order-issue trousers. She waved off the two nurses who started to take Hux from them. "Wait."

"General Hux. First Order," Poe explained. "He took a drubbing. Where can we put him?"

She withdrew a full step and waved away the nurses entirely. Disinterested, they retired. Poe's lips pressed together and he lifted his chin unhappily at this reaction. She said, "You can't put him here. I don't allow it."

Hux had regained some level of consciousness. He said, "I refuse-"

"Shut up, Hux," Poe snapped at him, using his name because Hux probably couldn't see with his eyes like that. To her, he said, "You're a medical professional. I can't take him to the same processing area the rest of the First Order guys went to. They're the ones who did this to him. I know we don't have bacta tanks or suits, but you're going to take care of him."

"You're on Hemmerjan, Commander," the doctor told him. "The medical profession here allows conscientious objections. I object. Any true citizen of this world would do the same. Let him die. Or kill him."

"Ha," Hux said bitterly.

"This is not the first time I wished Dr. Kalonia came with us instead of going with Rey," Poe said to Finn.

"Do you just have a dark corner we can put him in?" Finn asked the woman.

"We're not putting him in a dark corner!" Poe said.

"Kind of what happened with injured stormtroopers," Finn muttered.

"You can leave him here and I will find someone to deal with him," the doctor said, proving the First Order were not the most callous residents of the galaxy. 'Deal with him' had a clear connotation. "I will not treat a member of the First Order, any of their leaders, or allow this station to be used for their aid."

Poe sighed. "Let's take him to my room," he told Finn. Supported between them and guided, Hux managed to walk most of the way there. They went into Poe's quarter of the dome habitation. Finn and Rose had the other two quarters devoted to rooms, with the last quarter being a tiny common area and entry. Rose was still out, probably working on reclaiming the base they'd captured from the Order.

"He's filthy. You sure you want him there?" Finn asked before they deposited Hux on the bed.

"He has to be somewhere," Poe said. "Hux? You want to lie down or stay seated?"

"Down."

Poe picked up his feet. Hux jerked, losing his balance. His eyelids were swollen shut, so everything that wasn't telegraphed came as a surprise to him. Finn grabbed his shoulders and together the two of them rotated him onto the bed and lying back. Hux moved his hands over his stomach like he couldn't figure out how to settle them. Poe rubbed his own face. To Finn, he said, "Can you go back to the med station and pick up some stuff?"

"I barely know first aid," Finn said. "What do you need?"

"Hux, do you have eyes in there?"

"Yes."

"Are they hurt?"

"N-no."

"Okay. That's good to hear. They didn't gouge anything out." He turned to Finn. "Wraps. Some antiseptic wipes. Cleaning solution. Bandages. Gauze maybe. Tape?"

"You have no better idea than I do," Finn said.

Poe shook his head. "No, I don't. I'm a pilot, not a med-tech. Get some splints for his fingers if you can find them. Something to immobilize his hands."

"Handcuffs?"

"No," Hux said. "I will not … allow … restraints."

Finn and Poe both regarded him with equally bemused expressions. Hux's ability to allow or not allow anything was nearly non-existent. But Poe agreed. "No. That's not what I meant. To stabilize the bones. Get whatever you think is a good idea and we'll go from there. I don't know how long we'll be down here before I can find someone who will help."

"I'm a little unclear on _why_ you're trying to help," Finn said.

"I helped _you_."

"I was trying to defect. Technically, he's still the enemy. Those other guys surrendered, fine, but until _he_ does, the First Order still claims this place."

Poe looked at the guy. "He was literally dropped at my feet. I'm not going to treat him like an enemy. He's not. Not anymore. I don't care what sort of rules the First Order has about it."

Hux made a sound like he was going to object.

"Be quiet, Hux," Poe told him. "You don't get a say in this." Hux huffed, but didn't say anything.

Finn looked at Hux for a bit, giving him a perplexed expression. It softened a little. He turned to Poe. "Okay. I'll be back with what I can get."

"Might be a good idea to send someone else since she saw you with him."

"Good point," Finn said. "I'll ask Suralinda or Rose. Might be a good idea for you to stay here, because she heard where you were going to take him. There are a lot of people here who are really upset about the First Order."

Poe nodded. "Good idea. See you later." After Finn left, Poe shut and locked the door, not that it was stout enough to pose much of a barrier to entry. It would keep people from accidentally wandering in, which had happened a few times before Rose had painted an emblem of the Otomok system on the door. It matched her medallion and made the place unique. Poe poured some water into a bowl and came in with a washcloth. "Hey Hugs. I'm going to wipe some of this dirt off your arm." He settled on the edge of the bed.

"So I do not contaminate the place further?"

"Uh-huh," Poe smiled as he wrung out the cloth and picked a neutral spot on Hux's forearm to start with. Hux jumped and raised his other hand, but he didn't do anything with it. Poe kept talking. "I mean, it couldn't possibly be to clean you up. Because you said no aid."

"I did." Hux was breathing harder. "I am _in_ your bed … at this moment?"

"Yeah." Poe worked his way up the arm to the shoulder, where the dirt was stuck to him with blood and less identifiable bodily exudates. He moved aside the strap of the shirt. Hux twitched, his far hand moving like he wanted to push Poe away but it would hurt too much to do so. Poe stayed with the banter. "Never thought I'd have a general in my bed. A First Order one, too. That's something."

"Is it?"

"Uh-huh."

"Who normally occupies it?"

"Just me. But you're welcome to it as long as you need it. Based on how you look, that's going to be at least a few days."

"Where will you sleep? What are you doing?" Hux moved his head awkwardly as Poe worked on his neck. Blood had run down front and back, but for now he was just cleaning the front. Hux brought his hands up again and touched lightly at Poe's forearm. His hands were shaking.

Poe paused. "Is this hurting you?"

"You're touching me!"

Poe rinsed the cloth and wrung it out. The water was stained pink and grey. "Yeah, I am."

Hux tried to touch his own face, ending up doing it with the heel of his palm. He pressed it lightly to his eye and moved it around.

Poe asked, "Are you trying to get your eyes open so you can see?"

"Yes." Hux sounded both frustrated and pitiful.

"Can I help?"

"No."

Poe went back to cleaning the front of Hux's neck. He could see bruising as he cleared off the blood. Hux managed to get one eyelid peeled back enough to see around. He scanned the room before putting his hand down with a sigh. "I don't want you touching me. Everything hurts."

"Painkillers," Poe said, leaning back for a moment, rinsing out the cloth again. "I didn't tell him to get painkillers."

"I won't take them," Hux said petulantly. "You'll poison me."

Poe chuckled. "Yeah, that's why I dragged you in here. So I could poison you in peace and privacy. Not out there in the open, where all those people might stop me."

Even Hux snorted, but then he winced and gasped, raising a shaking hand to his nose and face.

"Okay, no more good jokes. Come on and let me clean you up." He held up the cloth even though Hux couldn't see it. Hux's hand was still in the way. Poe wasn't going to move it.

"No."

Poe sighed. "Hugs, I don't want to do this without your consent."

"Then don't do it."

Poe put the cloth in the water to soak and thought for a little bit. "What would you do if you were in my position?"

"Kill me." Hux relaxed. He put his hand down.

Poe made note of that. He hadn't paid attention to how worked up Hux had gotten while he was scrubbing him and how badly the man wanted to fend him off, but simply couldn't. "What would you do if you were in my position and you had too much empathy to kill someone who was hurt and needed help?"

Hux made a very soft snort, as much as he could manage without hurting himself. "Turn myself in for reprogramming."

Poe laughed a little. "Yeah, I suppose that would work. But we don't have that here. What would you do if you were back in the Order looking like this?"

"I'd … this is tiresome. I'd get cleaned up."

"By yourself?"

"No, I'd have someone …"

"Can I be that someone?"

Hux was quiet for a long gap. "You're not in the Order." His voice was different, though, like he was explaining why it wouldn't work rather than arguing about it.

Poe leaned in. "In another life, I could have been. You can't see me. You don't know who I am. All you got was, what, a blurry second or two? Just pretend."

"You are Commander Poe Dameron, leader of the Resistance as they are currently present on Hemmerjan, the one who was demanding our surrender, the one whom I was delivered to as an incapacitant when I refused to surrender."

"Yeah, I am," Poe said with resignation. "I don't want anyone to see you and think I had anything to do with this, or that I saw you like this and walked away. If you're not willing to pretend, then look at it this way - I don't want you to look the way they left you and I don't think you do, either."

"I can … understand that. You're not doing it for me." Hux nodded slightly.

Poe looked at him blankly for a moment, then said, "I'm going to touch your neck." He reached in with the cloth, deciding not to require any explicit acceptance of help, and started cleaning the far side of Hux's neck. Hux turned his head to make it easier. He sagged against the bed, head lolling as Poe reached across him to continue on the other arm. He didn't seem to have passed out as he wasn't insensible, but Poe stayed quiet and let him rest.

Some time later, Poe heard when Finn came in. He was noisy and talking to Rose, saying, "That makes it sound like they killed more of their own than we did."

Rose answered, "Yeah, that's what it looked like."

Hux stirred. Poe put a hand in the middle of his chest and rested it there. "Easy, buddy. You fell asleep. I've just been sitting here."

"You … finished?"

"I didn't touch your face. It's a mess and I knew you'd wake up. Besides, I wanted to wait for the stuff."

Finn came in the room with a bag of supplies. Rose stopped at the door. "That's him," she said.

Hux raised his head. "Who? Who is that?"

"Easy. That's Rose. She lives here." Poe patted him and stood, looking in the bag Finn handed him. "Thanks," he told Finn.

"With you?" Hux asked.

"No," Finn said. Hux's face jerked in Finn's direction.

"Well," Poe interjected, "yeah, kind of. In the other room." Rose walked to the foot of the bed, looking at Hux with an intensity that put Poe on edge.

"Where are we?" Hux asked, oblivious.

"In a little temporary dome-habitation," Poe said. "They're kind of like sturdy tents. It's what the locals could spare for us while we were fighting for them."

"Fighting against _you_ ," Rose said. Hux didn't say anything, but he turned his head to orient on the sound of her voice. Rose went on, "He doesn't know who I am, does he?"

"Should I?" Hux asked, using his elbows to push himself up in the bed. He raised his chin defiantly. "Sounds like I would have been safer with the doctor."

Finn said dryly, "You tried to have us executed on the _Supremacy_ , right before it got blasted in two." Hux said nothing. Finn added, "I'm the traitor."

"Ah. Just like the ones who did this to me. Feel free to finish the job." There was no way he could sneer, but he certainly tried. Blood ran down his chin.

Rose shook her head. "This isn't who I am – threatening someone who can't even get out of bed." She walked into the common area.

"Did you bring any painkillers?" Poe asked quietly as he pulled a few things out of the bag.

Finn responded, "I didn't think about it, no."

"Might be part of why he's grouchy."

"I am not grouchy," Hux said irritably. He was fighting a losing battle to keep from slumping back on the bed.

Poe smiled at Finn, who smiled back. Poe held up two fingers a short distance apart to indicate 'just a little grouchy'. Finn nodded and said, "I'll go see if I can find some painkillers."

"You should just get a med-kit out of one of the ships," Poe said. "It might have some bacta in it."

Finn nodded and left. Poe settled on the side of the bed again. He had a bottle of antiseptic cleansing solution in one hand and some gauze in the other. Hux turned toward him, facing him. The tension that had been in him while Finn and Rose were in the room bled away. Poe said, "I want to clean your face up so you're a little more put together and do what I can to make sure nothing infects. Okay?"

"I … hear you. That's your goal."

"Yeah, it is. This stuff might sting a little." He wet the gauze and started with chin and mouth. "Looks like you're missing a couple teeth on the left."

"Mm. Yes."

"Is your jaw broken? Are there injuries I can't see?"

"My ribs hurt. I was kicked in the … lower abdomen. But my hands and my face were the primary targets."

"You have a lot of cuts on your face for just fists," Poe observed as he cleaned his cheeks. The flesh was puffy and swollen, lacerated in a half-dozen spots. It was probably tender, too, but Hux was holding perfectly still for him. He was quiet aside from speaking and the occasional irregular breath as Poe scrubbed at the worst spots.

Hux said, "Wrayner was using a … thing. A grip-guard."

"Like a knuckle-guard? Something to protect his hand while he hit you?"

"Yes."

"Ah. That's what they took your teeth out with, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"Okay. I'm going to touch your eyes now." Hux continued to cooperate. Rose had come to the doorway and was watching silently. Poe kept talking. "I'll bet that's how you got the scalp wounds, too, isn't it?"

"I'm not sure. I know they hit me with rifle butts a few times in the back of the head."

Poe started around his nose. "Never let it be said that you were asking your people to do something you weren't willing to do yourself."

"Go down fighting?"

"Yep."

Hux sighed. "I'm still … fighting. I suppose this doesn't look much like it."

"You would if you could. We all know that. Hold still here. Can you breathe through your nose?"

"Yes, some. On one side. Is it broken?"

"Uh … It doesn't look that bad." Poe paused as Hux reached up with his thumb to feel around on it. "Hold on. Let me clean your thumb. Is that broken?" His hands were filthy.

"No. Don't- oh-." Hux bit off whatever other complaint of pain he'd been about to make. Poe froze, mid-way in the act of holding his swollen hand so he could clean it. With a strained voice, Hux said, "Everything else in the hand is broken. Just … not the thumb."

Poe let go carefully. "Okay. I'm just going to leave that alone, then." Poe tried to figure out where to set the antiseptic bottle. Rose came forward and took it out of his hand, along with the bloody gauze. He switched to the cloth. "I'm going to clean the back of your neck instead. Can you sit up a little?"

"Yes." Hux started upward, then fell back gasping. "No."

"You mentioned getting kicked. Stomach?"

"Among other places." Hux tried to get up on his elbows as he had earlier, but he didn't seem to be able this time.

Rose set down the bottle and gauze, then moved to the head of the bed and mimed pushing Hux forward. Poe nodded. He said, "I'm going to have someone help me here. They're going to push you up."

"What? Who?"

"Rose," Poe told him.

"I don't want her touching me!"

Poe had to smile, noticing the objection to _him_ touching Hux had disappeared.

Rose said, "I won't be touching you. I'll be touching your shirt."

"Come on," Poe said.

"No!"

"Okay, okay. I've been here before." Poe made a soothing motion at Rose, who was giving Hux a dirty look for being noncompliant. Poe looked to Rose. "Just hold the bowl over here where I can get to it." Poe put his hand on Hux's far shoulder. "This is me. I'm going to lift your head."

Hux said nothing, so Poe put his hand on the back of Hux's head and pulled. With his other hand, he scrubbed the back of Hux's neck as clean as he could get it. His hand came away tacky from the blood in his hair.

Rose helped him wring out the cloth. "That's a lot of blood," she said.

"Yep."

"Finn said this was … his own officers?" Rose asked.

"I think so." Poe glanced at Hux, who was saying nothing. He'd gotten up on his elbows finally so Poe wasn't having to hold him. "If I understood correctly, once we had them cornered and there was no chance at getting out alive or winning, Hux ordered them to keep fighting to the last. They decided not to."

"And then they beat him up?" Rose asked.

Hux shook his head. "You say that like we were hopeless. We were not. We were in a fortified position with sufficient supplies to hold out until the Order sent reinforcements, which they would have, even if it took weeks. The only reason we were defeated was internal. Betrayal."

"How so?" Poe asked. He wrung the cloth out and made a second pass at the back of Hux's neck and the top of his shoulders.

"Jelaki, the leader of the Hemmerjani miners, made common cause with Wrayner. They killed my guards and rendered me … unable to assert my authority … before the rest knew what was happening. Wrayner accepted your terms. I did not."

"So what does it mean that you didn't surrender?" Rose asked.

"He is not an authorized representative of the First Order if he was materially involved in my incapacitation. It means the First Order still claims the planet. They'll be back."

"Finn said the same thing," Poe said.

Rose chuckled. "That's ridiculous. There's no one left fighting."

"I am," Hux insisted as Poe lowered him back to the bed.

"How does that matter?" she asked.

"I know you understand the concept. You _bit_ me when I was going to have you and the traitor executed."

"He goes by Finn now," Rose said. "Not 'the traitor'."

"Fine."

"Finn," she articulated firmly, misunderstanding him. Hux sighed and turned his face pointedly away from her. "Ugh," she said in exasperation.

Poe shrugged. He looked at the hand Hux held across his belly. He touched the back of it lightly. "No compound fractures. Do you know anything about fixing hands?"

He was asking Rose, but blind, Hux didn't know that. Hux answered sullenly, "If you can get me a hardboard, tape, and some wadding, I can manage it myself." He was still facing away.

"With two broken hands?" Poe asked him.

"I can … give orders … for 'someone else' to manage it."

"I will follow those orders," Poe said gently. He put a hand on Hux's bare shoulder and caressed it. Hux turned mostly back to him. Rose raised a brow at Poe, who was continuing to pet Hux since it seemed to be getting a warm reception. At the look, Poe said, "He won't ask for help. Finn brought tape and gauze and a wrist splint but I don't think that's the kind of splint we need. Do you know where there's something stiff and small enough to flatten his hands? It needs to be light."

She nodded. "I know where some uncured plastisynth is. That should work. I'll bring the molding gun, too."

"That should be perfect," Hux said.

She looked between the two of them skeptically, then left. Poe sat there on the edge of the bed as he had before, watching the general. His hand slid down his arm to pat his forearm a couple times. Hux moved it so it rested against Poe's thigh. They were otherwise simply quiet and at ease with each other as Hux dozed.


	2. Yielding

Poe stayed by Hux's side as the man slept, contemplating the difficult spectrum of good and evil. On the other side of the galaxy, he knew Rey and Kylo Ren were trying to negotiate peace. It wasn't impossible that he and Hux might end up on the same side. For all the man's obstinacy, Poe knew that Hux had redeeming features. The obstinacy itself was cute. The guy wanted to fight everything and everyone. It made Poe smile. He stroked Hux's forearm slowly, because he could and because Hux had put it there practically in Poe's lap so he could do just that. Maybe he didn't want to fight _everyone,_ Poe mused, but just the people he thought would hurt him.

Poe rose when Finn returned. Finn said, "I tried to get down to the airfield, but they've got it blocked off for some celebration they're putting on tonight."

"They've impounded your ships," Hux said dryly, having woke when Poe left his side.

"No," Finn said. "They're on our side. They just wouldn't let me in."

"Believe what you will," Hux said. Poe directed a worried look between the two of them.

Finn shrugged it off and said, "All I could get at the dispensary was pills. Can he swallow?"

"I think so," Poe said. "He can talk."

"I can swallow," Hux said.

"I'll go get some water," Poe said, carrying out the bowl and dirty cloth as he went. "Do we have a straw anywhere?" he called out over his shoulder.

"No, I don't think so," Finn answered. "Maybe in the mess hall."

"Are they serving dinner yet?"

"I don't know. I didn't stop by there."

Poe came back in with a cup of water. "Can I get you to watch him while I go out? I need to check on some things, maybe grab something to eat. Then we can trade off – you can eat, party, whatever you want."

"You would leave me in the care of a self-proclaimed traitor?" Hux said.

Poe sat on the edge of the bed and took the pills from Finn. "Yes. I trust him with my life. I'm going to trust yours to him. As long as you don't try to stab him or something, you'll be fine."

Hux said, "I make no guarantees."

"I think Finn will just have to take his chances, then. I have pills for you here. They're probably poison."

"Good," Hux said.

Finn shot Poe a consternated look. Poe rolled his eyes and shook his head, then went on talking to Hux. "Finn's going to push you up so you can swallow." Hux made a protesting noise. Poe spoke over it. "Hey, don't even start that. I don't have enough hands to give you pills and hold water without spilling it all over you. I'm not going to drown you by trying to give it to you with you lying flat. It's just for a second." Hux pulled away from Finn's hands, rolling to face away from them. Poe told him, "He helped me carry you in here, remember?"

"I left the First Order because it was hurting people," Finn said. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Finn started to reach for him again. Poe held up a hand and said, "Give him a moment. He's had a rough day."

Hux snorted, cringed at how much it hurt to do that, and put the heel of his hand to his face. Finn backed off.

Poe said, "It'll hurt less if you take the pills. You can snort at more of my jokes then."

Hux glanced over his shoulder (not that he could see; it was habit), but didn't move. Finn said, "You'll recover faster and be better able to stab me later."

Hux sighed. He rolled over to his back again.

"Thank you," Finn said to Hux, rolling his eyes at Poe.

They raised him to a sitting position where Poe got pills and then water into him. It must have hurt on his cut lips and missing teeth, but aside from a grimace, Hux didn't make a sound. Poe said, "Don't put him down yet. Drink the rest of the water, Hux." He obeyed. "No complaints? You must have been thirsty."

"He's just building his strength so he can get back at me later," Finn said, playing along. He lowered Hux back to the bed. Hux might have nodded in the process.

Poe said, "Do you want me to get you some dinner?" Silence. "Hux?"

"Me?"

"Yes, you. I get it – you're not going to ask for any help at all, not even food or water, not to save your life or make things easier for yourself. If I get some food and I happen to put it where you can eat it, will you do that?"

"No. And before you … I'm not refusing on principle. I'm not sure I could keep it down. I'm not sure I'll keep down the water."

Finn left the room to fetch back the bowl Poe had been using earlier while washing him. Finn put it on Hux's stomach. "Here. If you need to throw up."

"Let's put it up here." Poe moved it up next to the pillow. "He can roll over, but we've already gone over that he can't always sit up without help."

"Oh, right," Finn said. "If you want to head on out, I'll be good here."

Poe stood. "You know, I'm beginning to think you were right. Callous as it sounded, all he needs is somewhere quiet and safe to lay up for a few days."

"A few days?" Finn asked. Finn looked down at Hux, then shrugged his acceptance. "I think it will be longer than that. He's not the roommate I was expecting, but I'm fine with it."

"You are? I know this isn't what you signed up for."

"Then you don't know what I signed up for," Finn told him. "I can do this."

Poe nodded. "Okay. I'll try to be quick."

"Take your time." Poe gave Finn a long look. Finn added, "He'll be fine, Poe. I'll make sure."

* * *

"Hey," Rose told Finn as she came in. He was polishing his extra set of boots. They were the ones he'd been wearing when he left the First Order. They fit him like a glove, but these days he wore the ones that went with his Resistance outfit (it was a stretch to call it a 'uniform') – they were brown. These had originally been white, but he'd hit them up with borrowed polish a few times already so they wouldn't stand out so much. They were a blue-grey now. "Where's Poe?" She could see into his room, as the door was open. Finn was sitting where he had a clear view into the room in case Hux stirred.

"He went to dinner. So we could go later."

"Do you really think someone might do something to him?" She hooked a thumb in Hux's direction. "They already had their chance."

Finn shrugged. "I don't know. But he has to be somewhere. We're bunking together anyway so we have the extra room here. He wouldn't be safe in the med-bay. The head doc there straight-up told us she'd have him killed."

"Wow, okay." Rose sat down. "But that's the thing. Those guys in the base straight-up killed the other First Order members – the ones who came with Hux, I'll bet. Why wouldn't they just kill him, too? Why go to all that trouble of beating him up?"

Finn bounced the boot slowly as he thought. "They wanted something out of him. They needed him alive."

In the other room, Hux said loudly enough to carry, "They needed a public execution that wasn't Wrayner's responsibility. They thought the Resistance would give them that."

"Why do they need an execution?" Rose asked. She stood and went to stand next to the door to Poe's room.

It was Finn who answered. "If Hux dies because Wrayner killed him, then I suppose the surrender doesn't count and the First Order still claims the place. But if he gets killed by the natives or the Resistance, then the next in the chain of command takes over and whatever they say works. Is that it?"

"Yes." Hux sighed. "There was a treaty between the First Order and the Hemmerjani that they have probably not told you about. Our occupation here is the direct result of them breaching their terms. It's all legal and above-board."

"Sounds a lot like what you did to the Otomok system," Rose said. "I'm sure that was 'legal' and 'above-board', too." Hux didn't answer. Rose turned to Finn, showing off what she was carrying. "I got the plastisynth and the cure gun. No one's using it tonight, that's for sure. Except us."

Finn nodded as he worked on buffing the boots to a uniform color. "Does Poe know how to use that?"

"Maybe." Rose went into Poe's room, where Hux was. "BB-8 tells me Poe did some of his mods." She said to Hux, "Let me see your hands."

"No," he said sullenly.

She tried to take his hand anyway. It bent in the wrong places. Despite the broken bones and obvious pain, he yanked it away with a gasp and bared teeth. She could see the gap of missing canine and lateral incisor teeth. "That," she said, "felt disgusting." She had a smear of bloody grime on her hand just from touching him. Poe hadn't cleaned Hux's hands.

"Then don't touch me!"

She sat on the edge of the bed instead. "You guys bombed my homeworld, killed my family, and I lost my sister fighting you and based on what I've been told here, you haven't stopped. I'm going to do what I want." Finn came to the doorway, looking in with concern.

Hux said, "'I'm going to do what I want' – the credo of moral superiority across the galaxy."

"I didn't start it!"

"Right. You didn't come over here and grab me. That was obviously me thrusting my hand into yours so as to more effectively revolt you." He was shaking. He withdrew to put his back against the wall on the other side of the bed.

She pressed her lips together, chastised. "Come back over here," she tried with a calmer tone.

"Why?" Hux was as far away as he could get now, knees raised a bit like he might kick her. His angle was wrong at the moment, but he was too blind to know that.

"I wanted to see if the pieces I brought were the right size."

"They'll be fine."

"Come back over here, _please_."

"Again - why? So you can feel better about yourself for being able to order me around? I'd rather die!"

"Look, I get it," she said. "You're blind. You're helpless. Your own people turned on you. No one is coming to rescue you and if Poe decides not to do this anymore, then you're stranded on a planet full of hostiles who've already said they'd do you in. You're scared. I'm trying to _help_ you."

"That is the most threatening offer of help I've ever heard," Finn said quietly from the doorway.

Hux tried to smile and even huffed a few nervous chuckles. "It is, isn't it? She'd make a wonderful officer in the Order. Don't you think … Finn?"

"I don't know about that, but bedside manner is up to spec." Finn moved in to lean against the wall. He smiled at her, softening his words.

"Okay, I'm sorry." She sighed and put the flat, white plastisynth pieces on the bed between them. "I'm sorry. I am. I did start it. Now. For something that happened a … a while ago."

"A desire for revenge is normal," Hux said. After a beat, he added, "I understand you better than what Poe's doing. Why is he doing this? Does he think I'll talk? That I have … information? I know little he couldn't get from the others if he'd bother to interrogate them. They might tell him freely."

"He's doing it because it's the right thing, just like what I was just doing to you is not. Listen, I helped splint my neighbor's son's foot once when he broke a toe. I know how to fix things, probably better than Poe does."

"Definitely better than Poe does," Finn put in. Rose nodded. Hux didn't see it. All three of them were quiet for a moment. Finn asked, "Do you have any medical training? Hux?"

"No."

"You said you thought the plastisynth would be perfect," Rose said.

"I've worked on circuitry in the past. The housings were made of plastisynth. I know what it is. You can mold it on site, hardening it into whatever shape you need."

"You've worked on circuitry?"

"Yes."

"Neat. When?"

"Em." Hux adjusted himself so he wasn't wedged in the corner and was a little more comfortable on the bed. "When I was in the academy. For one of my engineering projects, we laid out a communications panel."

Finn's face screwed up. "Officer's training involves panel layout?"

"No, I was trained as an engineer."

"How does that happen?" Finn asked, still confused. "That's a totally different career track."

"It's a long story."

When Hux didn't seem inclined to offer it, Rose said, "Do you have ideas about how to fix your hands?"

"I have ideas, yes."

"Tell me."

He paused for a moment, then began to speak. "Well, my- my thumbs are fine." Hux moved off the far edge of the bed and more toward the center, where he'd started from. "So all we need to splint are my fingers. I think the right pinkie and ring finger aren't broken, either, but I'm not sure. Still, it would be nice to brace the other two and leave some mobility so I can do a little grasping, or at least feel things. Maybe with the others fixed in position, it won't hurt as much to move those two."

"Okay, so one piece will be bigger than the other. Can I see your hand? Just set it on the bed. I won't touch it. I just want to measure."

After a few moments of hesitation, Hux carefully set his hand on the blanket between them. Rose just as carefully held the plastisynth above it and took a visual measure. Finn stepped forward to pat her on the shoulder a couple times. She handed him the empty bowl that was on the mattress next to Hux's pillow. "Can you put water in this? We need to soak his hands first and get some of that crud off."

When Finn returned, Rose put the bowl between her and Hux. "I'm going to take your wrist and guide it into a bowl of water, okay? Let it soak while I cut this to size." He nodded and allowed it. She got scissors and shaped the plastisynth, then arranged wadding and gauze from the supplies Finn had brought. When she was ready, she said, "I'm going to take your hand out and wipe it down. You should put your other one in there. It will hurt less if I don't have to scrub."

Hux was silent as she taped the molded the plastisynth to his hand, after having cleaned, wrapped, and padded it. She asked him, "Is this better bedside manner?"

"I have no idea. No one's ever done anything like this for me. Any of it." His voice was subdued.

"Well, I'm better at fixing problems than fixing people."

"That's unfortunate," he said. "People are so often the problem."

She smiled though he couldn't see it. "See? We found something to agree on! Other hand now."

He offered it. She moved the bowl out of the way and repeated the process.

* * *

When Poe came back, the hab was a relief from the bustle going on outside. The Hemmerjani seemed uniformly convinced the battle was won and it was time to celebrate. Poe didn't begrudge them having a good time, but it had been only a few hours and before the surrender, he'd been worried First Order reinforcements might arrive at any time. He still worried about it. "It's a mess out there," Poe told Finn and Rose. "You guys need to grab something to eat while they're still serving."

"Sure," Finn said as Rose set aside the datapad they'd been looking at. He gestured next to the door to Poe's room. "Those are, uh, for him."

"What?" Poe looked. It was Finn's spare set of boots.

"My feet are bigger than yours. I don't know about his. But if they fit … You know. He doesn't have any. I know what that feels like – not to have anything."

In the room, Hux had been resting, but now he was propping himself up on his elbows and doing better than he had earlier at it.

"Thank you, Finn," Poe said, touched. "That's really nice of you. How did things go, anyway, while I was gone?"

"No problems," Rose said brightly. "We put the splints on his hands, but they're really swollen, so we'll have to readjust them each day. Some of the bones are shattered. He needs a real doctor. I didn't want to touch him too much because he wouldn't tell me if it was hurting or not. I put them on loose. Keep an eye on it that it doesn't get too tight. I don't know if he might swell up more or something."

"How did that go?"

"Fine," Rose said.

Poe was sure there was more to that, but Finn nodded and told her, "Let's get going." They headed out.

Poe locked the door behind them and walked into the bedroom. "How are you doing?"

"Alive, which is still surprising. Did he give me something?" Hux was still up on his elbows, looking interested.

"Yeah. Boots. Hang on, I'll get them." Poe dropped what he'd had in his hands and brought the boots to the bed.

Hux laid back on the mattress. He ran the heel of his otherwise encased hand over the thing Poe had dropped on the bed. That and his thumb were the only parts of his hand he could feel things with. He alternated between the two, squishing on the foil packet. "What's this?"

"Nutrient pack, liquid meal. Did you keep down the water? The bowl's gone."

"Yes."

"I brought some straws, too, so that should bypass the lip problem. Some people complain about the taste of these packs, but if you can eat a little, I figure that will help. It's survival food, so it should be what you need. Here are the boots." He set them next to Hux's hip, so he could feel of them as he had the pack.

"Why did he do this? I didn't ask for them."

Poe took one of the boots and moved down to Hux's feet, running a hand down Hux's leg as he did to let him know where he was. "Well, first, let's see if they fit. Oh, I didn't get a good look at your feet. I forgot they were dragged through … stuff."

"It was nothing but blood and dirt. I didn't soil myself," Hux said defensively.

"I didn't say you did. Do you know where they put the bowl?" Poe looked around the room, but it wasn't there.

"No. Rose took it away after she finished with my hands."

"Okay. I'll be back." Poe found it in the other room, filled it with water, and returned with it and the washcloth. He set to scrubbing Hux's feet clean.

"Is this how the Resistance treats all their prisoners?"

"You're not a prisoner."

"I'm not?"

"No. You didn't surrender. That means you're a guest. But even if you were a prisoner, then yeah, I hope you'd be kept clean, allowed to rest, and given some basic care. And if you're _my_ prisoner, then that's definitely going to happen."

Hux spoke slowly when he said, "A guest is … it implies welcome. Perhaps even an invitation."

Poe rubbed gently on the cleaned top of one foot. "You're welcome here. None of the rest matters right now."

Hux licked his lips, exhaled oddly, and turned his head so he was partly facing away. He seemed overcome. Poe smiled softly at that and kept stroking his foot – a fearsome First Order general coming undone over a few words and a nice touch. He would have thought it was over-the-top if Hux had been any less genuine about it. He patted Hux on the shin and finished up. Then he went over to the two boxes he was using for clothing (one for clean, one for dirty) and retrieved a set of socks from the 'clean' box.

Poe rolled the socks on him and finally held the boot up sole-to-sole with Hux's foot. "Looks like it should fit. Do you want me to put it on you to make sure?"

"Yes." Hux got up on his elbows. He was tilting his head and raising his brows as though attempting to watch. "I still don't know why did this for me. Or why either of you are doing it."

Poe went ahead with opening up the boot and sliding it on his foot. It went on easily, like it was a little big. "Because he's been in your position and he's being nice. How does that feel?"

"It feels strange!"

"You're not talking about the boot are you?"

"The boot is fine. Can you put the other one on?" Hux's other foot moved toward him restlessly.

"Yes." Poe petted that shin for the display of eagerness and put the other boot on. "How's that?"

"Can you help me up?"

"Sure." Poe came to his side and looked at him. "Can you roll over and get your feet over the edge of the bed, toward the floor?"

"Yes." Hux moved; Poe helped. With his legs down, it was easier to get him upright. Hux set his feet on the floor and wiggled them in the boots. "His feet must be wider than mine, but they're about the right length." He lifted his head. "He defected. I haven't. I ordered his death. He should hate me for that."

"I know. He knows. He wasn't happy about it. But you still need these. And he's still being nice."

"It doesn't make sense," Hux said in a small voice.

Poe rolled his palm over Hux's bare shoulder. "As long as you're sitting up, I'd like to get some chow into you." Hux didn't answer. He just tilted his head in the direction of his feet and shuffled them. Poe opened the pouch. He stirred the contents in case they had settled and stuck a straw in the soupy stuff. "It's ready."

"Is there a way I can hold it?" Hux asked. His hands were effectively flippers with a white, hard plastisynth layer under his palm and fingers, taped to his hand securely enough to keep him from bending or flexing any of the damaged bones and joints. His thumbs were free and on one hand, his pinkie and ring finger were free. But there was too much plastisynth, even narrower as it was on that hand, and swelling, for him to get his thumb and pinkie finger together to grip.

They tried a few options before Poe said, "No, I'm just going to hold it. I'll sure you'll do better tomorrow or the next day when you can see what you're doing. It's right in front of you."

Hux sighed, but leaned forward until his lips found the straw. "I'm not as nauseous as I was earlier."

"You were probably in a lot of pain."

Hux tilted his head as though to deny it, then took another drag off the pouch instead. "This is delicious."

"Really?"

"I haven't eaten in two days. I think anything would taste good." Hux jerked back as they both heard distant explosions. "What's that?"

"Uh … not sure. I'll go look." Poe shifted, but Hux reached out for him, wincing when his encased hand hit Poe's arm. "What?" Poe cupped his forearm so Hux knew where he was.

"Um … come back soon. Don't … don't go far."

"I won't." Poe walked outside and looked around for a moment before returning. More explosions were going off, pyrotechnics lighting up the evening sky, since it had become dark enough for them. "Fireworks," he said as he returned. "They were talking about it in the mess hall. That's what I meant to Finn and Rose – I wasn't sure if they were going to keep the mess hall open or close early for the party." He positioned the straw next to Hux's lips. "Food's in front of you again."

"Ah." He took another pull from it. "They celebrated when we arrived as well."

"Glad to see you?"

"Not especially. Glad of the excuse to overthrow the royal family and negate the previous treaty, which we had arrived in an attempt to enforce. Then they chose a new royal family – distantly related to the old one – signed the new mining agreement with us, and were angry when we didn't leave the moment they told us to."

"It's their planet."

"That's arguable when they signed over mining rights to us. Twice."

"What, they signed a treaty with you and then didn't want to abide by it? Or did they not understand what they'd agreed to?"

Hux sighed. "Commander Dameron?" Hux smiled wanly. "I never could tell. Your forces showed up shortly after my arrival and battle was joined."

"You're telling me … we might have been fighting over a misunderstanding?"

"As I said – I don't know. My forces had a good position and plenty of supplies, so my intention was to wait. One of the star destroyers would be coming soon. I didn't even tell them to hurry. My presence here pinned down a wing of the Resistance in pointless fighting. No need to run you off in any hasty manner so you could cause us problems elsewhere. I assumed I could get back to meaningful discussions with the locals after."

"But then Wrayner turned on the other First Order members? All of them?"

"No, just the ones I'd brought with me. The group that had been here all along stayed loyal to him and defected to the natives. They kept me alive with the idea they could get me to cancel the treaty and rescind the First Order's claims here. He would have been better off to kill me to start with and cover it up, but he thought his methods of persuasion would work. He backed himself into a corner on that. He needs me killed publicly by someone else."

"So that's what that was all about?"

Hux shrugged, taking another pull at his dinner. "It was about the credits. It was our mine from the beginning, but now that it's fully developed, they want us gone so they can sell to the highest bidder and make more money at it."

"Their ore, but your refinery. Is that it?"

"Yes. Out here in the middle of nowhere, we were the only investor interested in developing. They brought the Resistance into the picture so they could ignore the agreements they've made. You've been used." Hux leaned forward again. Poe moved the pouch so the straw touched his lips. Hux finished it off.

"I see that."

"Though I suppose that doesn't matter much when the use is to damage First Order interests."

"I wouldn't say that. I want to hear both sides of the story. It helps me understand what's going on. Like why you guys didn't reinforce the place immediately, and why there was a general here in the first place."

"To negotiate. I wasn't here to lead a battle or else I would have come with more than an honor guard. There's more to it that involves their local succession traditions, property rights, mining guilds, First Order deployment strategies, and the like, but I can't discuss those with an enemy."

"That's okay," Poe said, looking in the pouch to see if the little bit Hux had missed at the bottom was worth repositioning the straw for. He decided it wasn't. "This isn't an interrogation."

"I didn't think it was," Hux said. "Just conversation."

Poe smiled. He started to say something, but the door opened. Finn and Rose came inside, accompanied by the distant beat of native music and voices. The shut the door and closed out some of the sound. Poe patted Hux on the forearm and went to the main room. "That was quick. Did you get something to eat?"

"Yeah," Finn said. "It was getting rowdy though. I thought I- We thought we should come back here."

"Is it dangerous? Should I go do something?" Poe asked.

Finn said slowly, "I don't … think so?"

"No." Rose shook her head. "We heard they released the miners and the First Order people from processing-"

"They were supposed to stay there overnight," Poe cut in.

Behind him, Hux said simply, "Ha."

Finn shrugged. "There are a lot of people out there. It's the natives. They're having a good time. Our people, the Resistance, were drinking some and relaxing, but I guess we've seen battles won before?"

Rose said, "It just seemed a little too 'yay, we killed them all' for our taste."

"Ah." They could hear fireworks going off again. "Well, let's hope they get it out of their system tonight so we can talk to them tomorrow about the Resistance pulling out, or if they want us to stick around in case the First Order comes back."

"This isn't the big victory they think it is," Finn said. "The First Order will be back. Probably as soon as we're gone. Maybe before. They need that dedlanite. There aren't very many other sources for that ore."

"I know. I was talking to Hux about it."

"You were? He was talking? About … that?"

"Yeah? Just talking."

"Oh," Finn said. "Sure. I didn't know he'd actually talk to one of us."

"It wasn't anything classified. Or even all that sensitive."

"He talked to us earlier," Rose said. Finn shrugged and nodded.

Poe went on, "We had a mission. We accomplished it. We're not going to stay here forever. I went by the communications center while I was out earlier and made sure all the official notifications went out. I guess we could head out any time we're ready to go and we think things are stable here, but if they're partying on the airfield, that's going to make it tough to go right away. Not to mention that I think our people deserve the night off – at least the ones not already on patrol. You guys sure you're going to stay in?"

Rose nodded. "I'd rather spend some time here." She looped her arm around Finn's waist. He smiled down at her.

"Did he give you any idea when the First Order was coming back?" Finn asked.

Poe shook his head. "I'm not going to ask, either." Poe chewed his lower lip for a moment. "Hey, tell you what? How about I see if Hugs is up to hitting the showers? I'll bet they'll be empty – everyone's at the party or sleeping – and he needs to get cleaned up a little more before bed." He patted Finn on the upper arm. "He likes the boots, by the way. They're a little big, but they fit okay. Thanks."

"Did he say that? 'Thanks'?"

Poe gave a tiny shake of his head. "He's not to that stage yet, but he really appreciated the thought. I can tell."

"Good." Finn nodded. He and Rose went into their quarter of the hab. Poe went in to Hux's. He was still sitting up and tilted his head toward Poe when he walked in.

"You heard?"

"Yes. I am to be showered?"

"Yep. If you're up to it. If you're not, Finn and Rose won't mind. They're not shy. The interior walls here are literally a piece of canvas though. The exterior ones aren't much better, as I'm sure you've noticed."

"If I understand your implication, then I am definitely up for seeing what passes as hygiene facilities."


	3. Surrender at Discretion

"Good man," Poe said to Hux's agreement to go to the showers. "Can you walk?"

"Yes. If I lift my brows, I can see a little. Dimly. Straight ahead of me. You, there."

"Really? How long as that been going on?" As he thought about it, Hux had seemed pretty good at finding the straw on the pouch.

"I didn't notice it until you were putting on the boots."

Poe leaned down in front of him to look at him closely. He could see there was just a crevice of an opening in the swelling of Hux's eyes. "Maybe sitting up has something to do with it. Elevating the head, reduce swelling, something like that."

"Perhaps." Hux reached out slowly and put his forearm on Poe's shoulder. Poe took Hux's elbow and steadied him as Hux used him to stand up. Poe straightened with him. Hux was just the right height to slide his arm around Poe's shoulders, which he did. It was an odd pose – more intimate than usual for friends, but not outside the bounds. Poe would have dismissed as meaningless except he knew the First Order was big on personal space. This was way over the line for them.

Poe looked up at him with a slightly furrowed brow. He rested his hands on either side of Hux's waist, which didn't elicit any objection or moving away. "What's this?" he asked as innocently as he could.

"This is how we walked here, wasn't it?" Hux played innocent right back.

"Yeah," Poe said, finding the whole thing odd but not in a bad way. Mostly it was unexpected. He supposed it was reciprocation for fondling the guy's feet and telling him he was welcome (invited even) into his bed. Poe considered that flirting with the guy had been … unfair. Or was it? "I'm going to need to carry some stuff. So while I like the idea, I need you to just hang on there for a moment."

Poe stepped away to retrieve some clothes out of the 'clean' box that would have to do for now. When he turned back, Hux said, "If you'll lead the way, I'll hold your arm."

"Got it." Poe paused in front of him with one arm slightly out. Hux found it, but then found he couldn't hang onto it. Poe told him, "Just link arms with me. Slide it in."

Hux did so. "As you say." There was a smug tone to his voice.

Poe couldn't turn and get a good look at him for the innuendo and even if he could, Hux's expression was terribly hard to read through that much swelling. Poe made a pleased noise anyway. They walked slowly. There was a large placard over the entrance to the showers saying 'MALE' in three different languages.

Hux's head tilted as he surveyed it. "Even I can read that. Was there some uncertainty about it?"

"Uh … when the shower buildings were first put up, the native contractors put the symbol on each that they use on this planet, but none of us knew it. Plus we didn't care. Once the Hemmerjani found out we weren't segregating ourselves, they got pretty upset."

"Ah. Yes, that's something they're a bit uptight about."

"They still haven't worked out what to do about some of the non-humans. But we'll be out of here soon enough and they won't have to worry about it anymore."

There were two sets of doors to go through with a supply of towels and washcloths between them. Poe added some to his load. Inside the building was a single, central hall with benches on either side. Beyond the benches was a curtain, present to keep the water off anything they left on the benches, not to provide modesty. On the other side of the curtain was a continuous, trough-style shower stall with a drain running the length of it. As Poe had expected, it was empty at the moment.

Poe put the fresh clothes and towels on the bench, then started stripping. Hux was able to slip out of the slightly oversized boots on his own. With his thumbs, managed to get his trousers open and pushed down along with his underwear, but then they bunched up and his breathing got irregular as he was trying to free them. Poe interrupted his own undressing and took hold of Hux's shoulders. "Easy. Take a seat. I'll get them off. Don't hurt yourself."

Hux sat. Poe slipped off his pants and socks, setting them and the boots under the bench next to his own shoes. Still seated, Hux was struggling with his undershirt when Poe's eyes went over his groin. "Oh, wow. You- That's what you meant by being kicked."

"Among other places." Hux made a small sigh. "I haven't … been able to see. Am I … intact, I suppose is the word?"

"Yeah. You're all there. It looks swollen, but I don't think anything is ruptured." He looked up at Hux's face. "Those guys were not good people."

"There's one less of them in the world."

"How's that?"

Hux lifted his broken hands. "I killed one of them. They made sure I couldn't do it again. Had I done for all three of them, we'd still be fighting. You should thank them for your victory."

Poe stood. "I am not thanking anyone who did this to another person." He helped Hux with the shirt. It had to be literally peeled off him, as the blood from his scalp wounds had run down front and back, cementing the fabric to his skin. "Yeah, you really need cleaned up. There was no way I could get to this with you in bed. Not without a lot of positioning."

Hux stood and reached over and ran his pinkie finger along Poe's forearm for a couple short strokes, then moved through a part in the curtain. Poe let out the breath he'd pulled in at that touch. It was unnecessary, gentle, and just as clear-cut as sliding his arm over Poe's shoulders.

Poe put his hand over that spot on his arm and looked after Hux. His heart was beating in sudden fervor. There were just too many little things adding together. Poe picked up a washcloth, then followed. The flow of water was motion-activated as Poe knew and Hux quickly determined.

"Let's keep your head out of that," Poe said, urging him out of the direct spray with hands on Hux's shoulders. "If it washes out the clots and you start bleeding again, we'll have a mess on our hands. I'm sure you've already lost enough blood for today."

"My scalp itches. And hurts." Hux scratched at the back of his head with a thumb. "What do I do about the hand braces?"

"Rose said we'd need to readjust them anyway. Just keep them out of the water for now."

"I can't clean myself without …"

"Then let me." Poe moved over to the surfactant dispenser on the wall and waved the washcloth under it. It drizzled out a dose. He walked behind Hux, trailing a hand over his shoulder to let him know where he was. He scrubbed at his back. There were other bruises. Hux's pale body showed them easily as angry red splotches at this stage, but the center of his spine was clear. That was where most of the blood had ended up. Poe left one hand on Hux's shoulder to brace him while the other traveled downward in wide circles.

"This feels so good," Hux said. He sounded drugged.

"It's supposed to." Poe gave a little squeeze to his shoulder.

"Are you trying to seduce me, Mr. Dameron?" His voice was relaxed and flirty.

Poe slowed his motions, thinking about that. It was his impression Hux was the one trying to make something affectionate that Poe hadn't (entirely) intended to be. But even the touching over his shoulder he'd just done, the squeeze, patting him earlier … hadn't Rose given Poe a really odd look at one point? "It would be a little unethical if _I_ were the one doing that. You're … maybe not a prisoner … but …"

Hux's voice turned tense. "What does that mean – 'unethical if you're the one doing it'? You're _washing_ me. You are, in fact, caressing my ass at this moment."

Poe jerked his hand away, the cloth with it.

"Please-" Hux said. It came out as a broken sound. Hux half-turned toward him, then tensed and raised his hands slightly, holding them in front of himself defensively.

"It's okay. It's okay," Poe blurted out immediately, because Hux looked like he expected to be hit. For a moment, they both stood silent with the water pattering down next to them. Poe reached out and touched Hux's forearm with nothing but the curled back of his index finger. "It's okay."

"I don't want you to do anything inconvenient or unnecessary," Hux said nervously. His words were came out awkwardly. He still had his hands up, elbows tight by his sides, chin tucked defensively. "Not on my account. I can walk. I can leave. You don't have to ... You could put me in a cell somewhere, I can't- I can't do anything about it. I never asked you to- You don't have to do anything for me. I-"

"Hux."

Hux took a few slower breaths, trying to calm himself. "Do I have something I need to apologize for here? Am I … unwelcome?"

"No," Poe said softly, the sound barely carrying over the noise of the shower. "No, you're not. It's just that … I have a lot of power in this situation, between us, right now, and you don't. So that means I have to be very careful I'm not taking advantage of that."

"I would prefer you did – take advantage of it."

"You hardly know me."

"I will eventually. Or-" Hux's lips twitched unpleasantly. "Or else …"

"You do know this is not a requirement for me helping you, right? Whatever you're trying to do, you're not- Oh. It's payment." Poe fell silent. "That's why you're offering."

"Have I … misread your purpose in rescuing me? You put me in your bed. You said you wanted someone of my … status … I am amenable this. I am-"

"No, I was joking! I-" Poe cut himself off. Hux had flinched at the raised voice. This was, after all, the guy who had patiently and naively fallen for the 'I have an urgent message for General Hugs' routine. Everything Poe had done to Hux today was running through his head – flirtatious words, caressing touches, forced familiarity, intimacy, talk of consent and who he took to bed – right alongside how much he knew First Order conduct, personal space, and mores were different. He'd had long talks with Finn about it.

Hux had paled and straightened in posture, leaning away from him. His hands went to his sides like there was no point in defending his body. "Oh. It was false. I see." His breathing changed and his shoulders shuddered. He started looking around, head moving as though trying to work out where he could go. Anywhere but here.

"No, it was not false. Come here. Come here?" Poe touched him lightly on the forearm. As he expected, Hux jerked away with a snarl.

"How do you say that?" Hux snapped at him. "I have nothing you want and no way to repay your magnanimity. I have a pair of boots and the clothes I was beaten in. I am powerless and unwanted, despised and hated. I understand this! Do not taunt me with it!"

"No, I won't. I won't. I'm saying I didn't help you because you were a general. That's all. The rest … the rest was real. Okay? Real." He touched Hux again and although Hux twitched, he moved his arm against Poe's fingers a second later. "Come here," Poe said again, sidling closer and sliding his arms around the guy. Hux sagged against him, shaking with suppressed sobs.

"Real?"

"Real. Okay?"

Hux nodded against the side of his head. In a shaky voice, Hux said, "I have dishonored myself. I have been given aid by the enemy … and I have accepted it. Regardless of my words, by my actions, I have. I want to do it more. I want you to take advantage, accept your payment, demand my surrender, however you want to put it. You told Finn you didn't think I was at the point of saying 'thank you'. You don't know the point I am at."

Poe stroked Hux's back soothingly. His eyes were watering from the heartfelt, desperate confession. "I think you're right," he cleared his throat and strengthened his voice. "I am trying to seduce you, Mr. Hux. Is it working?"

Hux drew in a shaking breath, going to pieces all over again. "Yes. Yes, it is." Hux pressed into him, a wave of trembling passing through him and then ending in deep, half-sobbing breaths. "Thank you. Thank you for helping me," he whispered. "You and your friends both. I don't know … how …"

"Sh."

Hux nodded. They held each other until they heard the doors open and close at the other end. Someone else would be joining them soon in the shower, so Poe released him. "Turn around, let me finish. Might involve a little ass-caressing, though."

"I don't mind," Hux said quietly. "I really, truly, don't. Even aside from all of this. Finn … he found someone, right?"

Poe grinned at Hux, then knelt and scrubbed down the back and sides of his legs. "Yeah, he did." He came up and touched at the back of Hux's head. "How far down on your head did they hit you?"

"Mostly on the top. I was kneeling. It was not my idea."

Poe laughed. "Okay, no, I'm sorry for laughing, but I never imagined it was your idea. None of it. Especially not the part where they brained you trying to get you to change your mind. Come here. Back up into the water here, tip your head forward to keep most of it off you, and I'll rinse as far up as I can. Let me know when I start getting to the parts that hurt."

Hux complied. "It all hurts," he said with a tired voice, like he was as emotionally wrung out as Poe suspected he must be. "I'll let you know."

"We'll get some more painkillers in you when we get back. Can I get you to start telling me what you need?"

"Yes. I need painkillers. And either sleep or stimulants, but sleep would be better for my long-term health, assuming you believe I will live longer than a few days."

"You're going to live longer than a few days," Poe told him. "Did you sleep last night?"

"No."

"Night before?"

"They took me in the night. I'm not sure of the time. That's … far enough on my scalp."

Poe nodded. He glanced down the lane, seeing someone had entered at the other end. He recognized them as one of the battery crew persons. Hux's head came up at the sound of the extra shower coming on. Poe grunted and nudged his head forward, out of the spray. "It's okay. It's at the other end. Another guy taking a shower."

"Are we too close to one another for polite standards here?"

"He's in the Resistance, not one of the natives. But all I'm doing is washing your hair and I'm done with that anyway. I think we're fine. Let me wash myself up real quick and we'll get going."

He stepped back and started on himself. Hux moved enough to activate the next shower down and touched at his front as best he could, given limited visibility and basically only his thumbs (which he had to avoid getting wet).

Once on the other side of the curtain, Poe dried Hux first (being careful over the vivid bruises on neck, back, ribs, gut, and groin) and then himself. Hux picked at the clothing Poe had brought with him. "Are these yours?"

"Yeah, but get a set for yourself. I brought two. Don't put your dirty stuff back on."

Hux managed the underwear himself and was pulling his pants up when Poe paused to help him fasten them. They were too loose. Hux told him, "It will serve to get me back to the hab. I can go back to my things if I can get them laundered. Or even just a basin. I can clean them."

"It's not going to be that way," Poe said quietly. "I'll get you some stuff sized for you. We'll start with a belt for this. I'll see about the rest tomorrow. Sit and I'll get your socks and boots on."

They could still hear the cheering going on as they walked back to the hab. Some public announcement system had been added, but the words were too garbled by distance, the accent of the Hemmerjani, and occasional music to be made out. Poe waved at a handful of people he saw that he knew. He doubted any of them recognized Hux – hair darker from being wet and holding up a set of Poe's pants by a thumb in the belt loop.

They stopped in front of the door. "Do you think they've had enough time?" Poe asked.

"Since it might be relevant between us, understand that I have no idea how much time they might need."

"Gotcha." Poe leaned close and dropped his voice. "Hux, I know what you're offering me. And this is not a rejection in any shape or form. But please know – I'm not going to take you up on it until you're healed. I don't get off on hurting people."

Hux made a small tilt of his head. "We would not be having this conversation if I found you to be cruel."

"Ah," Poe said quietly as a private smile creased his face. "That's what I want to hear."

When Hux said nothing more, Poe knocked and announced himself before using his code key. He waited a few seconds, then opened the door. The door to Finn's room was shut. Rose's was open and empty. Poe went in his own bedroom, with Hux following him.

"Do I sleep here?" Hux asked.

"Yes." Poe fluffed the blanket and gestured at the bed. "Sit down and I'll get the boots off. I'm going to leave them here next to the end of the bed so you can find them by yourself if you need to, okay?"

Hux nodded. He was feeling around on the blankets and sheets. "You're sleeping here as well?"

"What do you want?"

"I want you to sleep here with me," Hux said promptly and clearly. "I don't want to sleep alone if I don't have to. Not after today. Or yesterday."

"You don't have to." Poe took off his own shoes and pants, leaving on t-shirt and underwear.

Hux either saw or interpreted the rustle of clothing. He took off his pants as well. "Do I take off more?"

"What will you be comfortable in?" Hux didn't answer. "How do you normally sleep?"

"In pajamas."

"I don't have any. Will you be able to sleep like that?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Scoot over, then. These beds are made for one, but Finn and Rose make it work somehow." He wasn't sure how Finn and Rose managed it, though. He couldn't avoid touching Hux with his hip and shoulder, but Hux didn't try to move away. Instead, Hux reached back and put his hand (or at least the unfeeling plastisynth) on Poe's groin. Poe's brows shot up. Hux touched him with elbow and forearm to figure out where he was, then moved his hand to Poe's hip. Hux pressed on Poe's hip, trying to pull on him. His intent was obvious.

Poe rolled fully to his side, spooning Hux from behind. It felt good. Hux sighed with relief. Feeling that, Poe insinuated his fingers between Hux's arm and side. Hux lifted it slightly. Poe slid his arm in and around him, being delicate because of the bruises on his ribs. He smelled good – clean and warm, an easy armful. Poe laid his cheek against Hux's back and went to sleep.

* * *

It was the lights playing over the sides of the habitation that woke Poe. It wasn't uncommon at night, but such lights usually shone briefly on their place, saw the Otomok symbol, and went on as the light-bearer sought out their own place in the confusion of domes. These stayed. There were several of them. He could hear the murmur of voices. Someone knocked on the door.

He extracted himself from where he'd been comfortably curled around Hux's warm form, found his gun belt in the half-light, and opened the door to his room. Finn was standing in the doorway of his own room, hands empty.

"I thought you were already back," Finn said. Then he did a double-take. "Wait, you were sleeping in there? Where's Hux?"

"He's in there." Poe was looking at the number of lights – at least a half dozen – and listening to the sound. There was a lot more than a half dozen people out there. He pulled his blaster out of the holster and dropped the belt to free up his other hand.

"You were sleeping together?" Finn said, like that was obviously the most important thing to be talking about right now.

"Yeah. Get over it. I'll explain later."

The knocking repeated, along with a call of "Harah!" which was a Hemmerjani call for attention, essentially 'Hey there!' Voices outside rose abruptly as they abandoned whatever attempt at stealth and civility they'd been pretending at.

Poe went to the door. "This is Commander Poe Dameron. What's going on?"

"Come outside. We need to talk."

"We can talk in the morning. This is the middle of the night. What's going on out there?"

There was disjointed conversation outside before the accented voice said, "Give us the First Order general. The government of Hemmerjan will take custody of him." There were louder voices of affirmation and something about a presentation.

Behind him, Poe heard Rose ask what was going on and Finn direct her to get her blaster. Poe said to those outside, "You know, this sounds like a long, complicated conversation to be having at night through a door-"

"Open the door!" some other voice called out.

"No, there's a naked woman in here," Poe said calmly, although he doubted that was true. "I can't risk you seeing her. Cultural prohibitions and all that. But like I was saying, I promise I'll talk to the prime minister in the morning and we can get this settled-"

"Aliens must go!" the crowd shouted, at first erratically, then as a chant. Poe had heard, many times, off-worlders in general referred to as aliens by the natives. Actual species was immaterial.

Someone put a vibro-blade (or what amounted to it – it was a Hemmerjan-style knife with a powered blade) through the layers of impregnated canvas that made up the exterior walls of the hab. They yanked down, opening a slash next to the door. Poe hurriedly changed the settings on his blaster to stun, cursing himself for not having done that earlier.

Finn did not bother. Nor did he wait for someone to get inside so he'd have a nice, clean shot. He fired a red bolt at the slice, scorching a hole at torso level. The cutter had crouched to add a horizontal cut to the bottom so they could get in. Some unlucky soul in the lynch mob outside went down instead.

It was chaos after that. Someone bashed in the door as Poe was stunning the first person through the slashed opening, knocking Poe down in the process. Lights strobed and flashed crazily. The red bolts from Finn's blaster kept going off. People got inside. The lights went out. Poe recovered his feet only to be shoved into a wall. Both he and his assaulter went to the ground again.

Finn was yelling for Rose. More cutting sounds. Shots. Rose yelling, "I've got him!" and then "NO!" Poe couldn't stun the person on him without the bolt effecting him just as much, but he managed to shoot several circular blue waves of stunning force over the person's shoulder. Then his attacker figured out what he was doing and tried to wrestle the blaster away from him. Finn kicked the person off Poe and they scrambled away. Poe stood up. Their foes were falling back, having discovered the entrance was a death trap.

"Back here!" Rose yelled. Finn dashed into Poe's room and a brawl ensued with sounds of scuffling and Finn and Rose exchanging clipped words.

No shots were being fired, but Poe couldn't see what was going on in the dark. He did see Hux feeling along the wall toward him. Poe reached out for his elbow. "It's me. Come here." He tugged Hux forward next to him. Whoever Finn and Rose were fighting was either violently ejected out a similar slash in the back wall, or fled through it on their own power. Hux was breathing hard, but was otherwise silent as he stood half-pressed to Poe's side. Poe slid an arm around his waist and Hux leaned into him even more, putting his arm around Poe's shoulders.

Angry voices sounded outside, most of them familiar this time. The new head popped through the cut in the back wall. "Hey?"

Finn jumped and yelled. "Snap! Don't do that! I almost shot you!"

"What's going on, guys?" Snap said casually. "Is this a party I wasn't invited to, or are you refurbishing the place?" He fingered the sliced fabric.

"Who is that?" Hux whispered.

"Snap Wexley," Poe answered. "One of ours." Someone else was coming through the front, carefully and with a light. Poe greeted them. "Hey, Jessika. We're in here."

"Who are all these people on the floor?" she asked.

"Hemmerjani, I think."

"What were they here for?"

"General Hux. Abduction attempt, looked like."

"He's here?" She stood up and played the light over them at chest level. "That's him? What did they want with him?"

"I'm not sure, but it didn't sound good. Mob coming by at night? Won't listen to reason?"

"Didn't they have him earlier today?" she asked.

"No," Poe said. "That was the guys in the mine. The Hemmerjani never got a hold of him."

"Lucky for him, looks like." She bent to check for a pulse on a person at her feet.

Finn came out of the back room. "What are we going to do?"

Poe chewed his lips, looking around as Jessika checked another person. Some were alive and only unconscious from the stun setting, but some were dead from Finn's blaster. Poe took too long to answer, because Hux spoke.

Hux said, "You should gather your people, break the impound on your ships, and evacuate the planet. You killed natives tonight. There is a much larger mob who were planning on watching my execution. We've heard them cheering all evening. They'll be inbound as soon as the survivors you repulsed get to them. Don't wait. Take the moment. Run for the ships."

Finn, Poe, and Jessika looked at one another. Jessika shrugged. "Sounds like good advice. I'd like to find a reason not to follow it given it's coming from him, but," she gestured to the bodies, "dead people."

"They were attacking us," Finn said testily.

Snap came up behind Poe and Hux, who were still standing right next to each other. "Who's this guy?" He looked closer in the dim and erratic lighting. "Are you okay? You need medical treatment."

"This is General Hux," Poe said. "He was _getting_ medical treatment until we got woke up."

"First Order General Hux?" Snap asked. "That was the guy they threw out earlier? Yesterday, I guess?"

"Yeah," Poe said, sounding tired to have to explain again.

"I heard about that. Sorry, guy," Snap said to Hux, who had been silent through the exchange.

"Is he on our side?" Jessika asked.

"Not-" Poe sighed. "He's on the First Order's side."

There was a long beat of silence as they processed that strange piece of information. "How does this work?" Snap asked finally.

"I have no idea," Hux answered testily.

Finn put a hand over the bottom part of his face.

Jessika's light was on Hux's waist where Poe's hand rested. Then it crossed their bodies to where Hux had his arm around Poe's shoulders.

Snap exhaled heavily. "You vouch for him?"

"Yes," Poe answered.

"Me, too," Finn said quietly. Hux's head jerked toward him. Finn stared at him as though their eyes were meeting. "We stick together. It's the only way this works."

"I'll vouch for him, too, then," Rose said.

"You don't have to," Finn told her.

"If you do, I do," she said fiercely. "We stick together – all of us."

"Let's get out of here," Poe said. "We'll talk about it more later. Rose, Snap, Jess – get everyone up, dressed, grab whatever they can carry. We'll move out in half an hour or as soon as we see trouble. Finn, you're with Hux. Keep him safe."

* * *

Getting to the ships and off the ground was something of a non-event. The Resistance had numbers and weapons against a few distracted guards who weren't expecting them. As they were gaining altitude, they could see the natives searching the domes. There was some griping among the rebels about things they hadn't had time to carry away, but no one was interested in sticking around for starring roles in a riot with the very people they'd been there to 'save'.

Hux was an easy charge for Finn to deal with on the trip to the ships. He did what he was told, asked minimal questions, and didn't cause problems. Once the ship was moving, Finn had him sit out of the way on a cargo crate while he went over to ask after Rose. "Yeah," Finn said in response to the flight officer, "just tell her where I'm at." He walked back over to Hux and sat down next to him.

"Your wife?"

"What's that?"

"Is she your wife? Rose?"

"Uh … yeah, I guess you could say so. The Resistance has a … ceremony we haven't gone through. But as far as the First Order's concerned, yeah. We live together. We're married."

"What kind of ceremony?"

"Um … They have someone religious ask for good luck. The Force to guide you. Everyone else is there. Your friends and family. You make, um, promises to each other – you and your spouse."

"What kind of promises?"

"To love them. Keep loving them. Be a good person. Treat them well. Honor them. Protect them. Rose and I are married as far as all that goes. But we haven't done it in front of everyone."

"'Done it'?"

Finn frowned at him. The implication of Hux's tone was clear. "Made promises in front of a religious leader and everyone we know. It requires a little bit of scheduling. That can be … hard, in the middle of war."

"I can imagine. Does your being part of the First Order complicate this?"

"I'm not part of the First Order anymore." Finn said it defensively.

Finn thought that would be the end of it, but Hux asked, "Did it complicate it to start with?"

"No."

"Did you have to surrender? Were you a prisoner?"

"No."

"Of course, you defected to start with. You'd proven yourself."

"Are you going to go back to the First Order, first chance you get? Would they even let you back?"

"No."

"To both?"

"To both."

"What are you going to do, then?"

Hux was silent for a long moment. "I have a plan. Perhaps you could help me with it."

* * *

"Commander Dameron?" Hux took a few careful steps forward as Finn faded back.

Poe moved closer. "I'm here."

"I ask that I be allowed to send a message to the First Order. In that message I will tell them that I convinced all Resistance personnel to leave Hemmerjan and ended the rebellion I was sent to quell. It should take them some time to understand that the First Order no longer has a station there. When they do, their most likely first step will be negotiation instead of orbital bombardment. I think it is the best I can do to further your interests that does not directly contradict my duty."

Everything else faded into the background for Poe. "I … You'd do that for us? For Hemmerjan?"

"I do it for you. You have my unconditional surrender."

"Oh? Uh …" Poe looked past Hux at Finn, who was listening intently despite trying to lurk unobtrusively. Seeing Poe looking at him, Finn pointed at Hux and covered his mouth. Poe turned back to Hux. "I appreciate … how much that means to you. I do. I've seen it. You've shown me. It matters. Just the same, I hope I've been showing you that it isn't necessary. I, and most of the rest of the Resistance, will treat you as a person worthy of dignity and fair treatment whether you surrender or not. The Resistance doesn't keep prisoners. It doesn't … accept surrenders."

Hux breathed out heavily like that wasn't the answer he wanted. "I would ask … that you make an exception. I am not a random stormtrooper or TIE pilot."

"You're … asking that we take you prisoner? Formally?"

"Yes."

"Um … you need to give me more here. I'm not getting it."

"Fraternization with the enemy is a crime. A prisoner is not expected to be responsible for their conduct or what they might be forced or coerced into doing, so long as it does not involve direct treason."

"Oh! You're asking to d- to, uh, date me? Fraternize? Until they like, repatriate you something? Is that it?"

Hux looked flummoxed. He moved his hands uncertainly. Behind him, Finn gave Poe an exaggerated nod.

Poe grinned and wiped a hand down his face. "Okay. I accept."

"Thank you," Hux said in a very small voice. He reached out to touch Poe's arm.

Poe stepped forward to embrace him. Hux sagged against him, exhausted by everything. Poe told him, "After you send that message, we're going to find the ship's medkit and see if there's some bacta pads in it for you, then we're going to my quarters and you're finally going to get some rest."

"We're both going to get some rest," Hux said.

"Yeah," Poe said, nodding. Hux might be his prisoner, but he wasn't shy about telling Poe how it was going to be. Poe didn't mind. "We are."


	4. Humane Treatment

**A/N: For Sunangelflowers, who urged me to write a follow-up.**

"Okay," Poe explained, "there's enough bacta here for two hand-sized 'wounds'. I think it's intended for entry and exit wounds due to blaster fire." He skimmed the directions on the label, frowning at how skimpy the information was.

"Apply it to my eyes and my lips," Hux said. "If they can be divided, then anything else on my right hand."

"Your eyes? But you can already see out of your eyes some, right?" Poe dipped his head somewhat, peering at Hux. He couldn't tell if he was making eye contact, but Hux lifted his head like he was. "Your hands are completely messed up."

"A bacta pad is not going to mend broken bones overnight. It will only make me comfortable and what would make me most comfortable is having my eyes and lips healed. That is within the ability of the pads."

Poe fingered the packet restlessly. "I really think these should go on your hands."

"I … disagree."

Poe rubbed the back of one knuckle against Hux's knee. They were in Poe's quarters, with Hux seated on the bed and Poe crouched in front of it with the medkit next to him.

Hux explained, "I need to be able to see. I need to be able to speak and … whatever else you want of me. I would like to work for my passage, as much as I am able. For you." Hux reached out and touched Poe's arm. "With you? You … called it dating?"

"Well, yeah, but …" Poe trailed off. Did the guy want his mouth in working order to be able to blow him? It made a sick sort of sense. He set the bacta pouches on top of the medpack and exhaled heavily. He wasn't sure what he'd gotten himself into here.

Hux went on, "I will do whatever you consider … ethical. If you will tell me how, I will please you."

"Whoa, um." Poe grimaced. "Hux, you're not a sex slave."

"Mm. Sex 'worker', more like. I'm not offering slavery."

Poe's brow furrowed at the distinction. He was quiet as he tried to make sense of that.

"I thought you understood," Hux said in a softer tone. "Last night, in the shower? You understood this was payment? I have nothing else I can offer, nowhere else I can go." His voice shook slightly and Poe moved to put his hands on both of Hux's forearms for reassurance.

"That makes this sound so coerced," Poe said sadly.

"You know I am perfectly able to say no and refuse to cooperate. You've seen that."

"Well … yeah." There was that, and it was an important distinction.

Hux swallowed. "You have been kind to me. I want to reciprocate. 'Thank you' is just a pair of words. I can _show_ my gratitude. I can-"

Poe put his fingers over Hux's lips. "Sh. Kay? Sh. I don't want to hear the details." Poe let his hand drop.

They were quiet for a long moment. As a whisper, Hux said, "You said you would seduce me. I … I would like that - to be seduced. By you. Wanted. By someone who cared …"

Poe hugged him gently, gathering him in. He put his lips near Hux's ear and whispered back, "If you're offering to go to bed with me like this and be my every sexual fantasy, then I think I've succeeded on the seducing you part." Poe grinned.

Hux pressed his forearms tighter to Poe's sides and nodded. Hux let out a shaky breath. "Please stay with me. Now instead of being on a planet full of hostiles, I'm in the middle of the Resistance, being carried back to your base or wherever." He tried to chuckle, but it came out as a sadder sound. "I don't know what to do, Poe. I'm so tired. Everything hurts."

"I do want you, Hux." Poe pulled back and looked at him. "Not banged up like this because that's not my thing, but I understand part of what you're looking for is safety. Security. And you're safe if you're bedding me." He could have said 'You _think_ you're safe if you're bedding me' because it was ludicrous and Hux would be reasonably safe no matter what, but he didn't want to make Hux's insecurities any worse. "I don't know – is that how it is in the Order?" His prisoner experience with them had been different.

"No. You're not safe there no matter what."

Poe nodded and petted Hux's knees. "You're safe here. You're safe with me."

"I know. That's why-" Hux swallowed nervously.

"You're safe. I want you. I'll stay with you." Hux breathed out shakily in relief. Poe added solemnly, "I appreciate the sincerity of your gratitude. I accept your offer." He glanced down at the medpack, then back up at Hux. "I'll put the stuff on your face and whatever's left on your hands. Like you want." Poe's acquiescence wasn't because he intended to use Hux the way Hux expected him to, but that if doing it this way would make Hux feel safer and more empowered to make himself safe, then Poe wouldn't take that from him. "Lie down."

Hux exhaled deeply and did. Poe opened the first packet. The bacta came in the form of a spongy, gelatinous material with a film backing. "Ah," Poe said, "this comes in strips. Perfect." He divided the strips to lay two over Hux's eyes and two over his mouth. "You can still breathe, right?"

"My nose, too."

"I'm going to assume that means, 'Yes, I can breathe right now, but my nose was broken so please add that to the list of things I want bacta put on.'"

Hux huffed a few laughs and moved his lips under the strips, but said nothing. Poe finished arranging the contents of the first packet on Hux's face, then put the second on his right hand.

"Now, you can't see, you can't talk, and you shouldn't be moving. Perfect. I'm going to pull a blanket over you so you can get some rest."

Poe pulled out the blanket, fluffed it some, and pulled it up Hux's body. Hux shifted to the side, cramming himself against the wall. He patted the mattress next to him with his left hand, then pushed on the edge of the blanket to flip it back on itself.

Poe smiled at the insistence, although it worried him, too. "Let me get my boots off, and yours too. They were both still in the loose clothes he'd been in during their escape. While Poe didn't usually sleep with pants on, he was tired enough he didn't care.

The bunk in his quarters wasn't made for double-occupancy any more than the one in the hab-dome had been, but it was even less able to accommodate two when Hux had to lie on his back so the pads would stay on his face. Poe curled up next to him, but slept badly with his butt half-off the bunk. He left it when he realized Hux was truly and fully asleep. Poe hauled in a chair, kicked his feet up next to Hux on the bed, covered them with the blanket, and reclined. He'd slept in his cockpit often enough. He had dropped off to a doze when the door chimed.

Poe made a quiet groan. "Come in," he said as softly as he could and still be sure the door would detect it.

The door slid open. Finn stepped in. Poe raised his hand to his lips immediately, holding it diagonal and making two short motions downward. He doubted the First Order used the same hand signals, but Finn seemed to understand the need for quiet. As far as Poe could tell, Hux remained asleep. Finn moved to lean against the wall next to the bed. Poe remembered coming to Finn's side when he was tending Rose on the _Millennium Falcon_ after they left Crait. There were similarities.

"You're not in bed with him this time?" Finn said quietly.

"I was. Bed's not big enough. I'm going to have to get different quarters."

Finn looked back and forth between them. In a low voice, he said, "Listen, I know a lot can happen between a couple people in a day, or like in this case … half a day? But … I talked to him earlier and he really doesn't think he has any options here except being with you … like this. What are you doing with him?"

Poe exhaled slowly. He shut his eyes for a long moment. "Finn. I'm so glad you see the problem. I'm so glad you're asking about him and not just looking the other way. It means you care, even about him. It means you're a good person."

Poe looked back at Hux. "Dr. Kalonia told me something once that stuck with me – 'Not all injuries are physical.'" He looked up at Finn. "He's been hurt. He's been hurt bad. He wants someone with him. It's human. This is something I can do for him."

Finn thought about that for a while. "When I left the Order, I needed someone. I thought that was Rey at first – not romantically, but just as a friend. She had her own mission, though, with Luke. Then I met Rose." He smiled. "She gave me something worth fighting for. Is that what he's looking for?"

Poe shrugged. Quietly, he said, "Finn, he's scared. I think right now he just wants a good night of sleep, some decent food, a little healing, and the reassurance that he's not going to be killed tomorrow. And yeah, maybe he's willing to blow me to get that, but he doesn't have to." He looked to Finn. "But if that's what it takes to make him feel safe and in control of at least something in his life, then what do I do?"

"Seriously?"

"Yeah," Poe nodded, raising his brows to show his sincerity. "Because I think it's going to come to that tomorrow or the day after." Poe chuckled, "He's pushy, Finn. He knows exactly what he wants and he's going to whatever it takes to get it. I could hand him off to a stranger and send a message that I was just joking about caring about him, or I can let him do what he wants with me."

"Are _you_ okay with this? With … what he wants to do … to you?"

Poe looked at Hux briefly, then the floor. He thought about it. "Yes. So far, he seems like a sweet guy. I hardly know him, but that's never stopped me before."

"A sweet guy?"

"Yeah." Poe looked up at Finn. "He's innocent, in his own way. He's trusting. He's smart. He's stoic. He's determined. He's brave. He's vulnerable – and he knows it; he'll admit it, if he feels safe to do it. He's trying to do his duty no matter how tough that is. He'll be pretty hot once he gets cleaned up. I don't think he understands how to respond to kindness." Poe's voice turned softer. "I'd like to show him. I want to take care of him. I want to be that hero he needs right now.

"Once he's not so afraid, all the other ethical problems with what he wants to do will go away." Poe shrugged. "And maybe once he's safe, he'll decide he wants to do something else than hang out with me and he'll move on. That's okay. I want him to be able to do that, if that's what he wants."

Finn nodded. "What do you need from me?"

"What you did yesterday was great. Give him advice. Point him around. Make sure everyone knows he's on our side."

"Uh, is he?"

Poe grinned briefly and shrugged. "I think we're going to have leave that one up to him. But make sure he has some people other than just me. If you're, like, concerned that I'm abusing him. Then give him options. Friends. You and Rose vouched for him, too, and he heard that. It matters."

"I know. That's why I came by. And for you."

Poe nodded. "Thanks, Finn. You're a good friend."

Finn shook his hand and let Poe pull him down into a short hug. He glanced over at Hux and nodded, satisfied with the conversation. He patted Poe on the shoulder and let himself out.

Poe wiggled his feet a little after Finn was gone and said, "How much of that did you hear?"

Hux let out a heavier breath than usual, but said nothing. Poe couldn't tell if he was still asleep (which was reasonable considering what Hux had told him of his past few days) or persisting in pretending to be asleep. Either way, Poe let it alone, stretched in the chair, and drifted off to sleep himself.

* * *

The uncomfortable position in the chair woke Poe once his minimum need for sleep was surpassed. He scratched at his nose and watched Hux slumber on. The guy needed the rest. Poe hoped he could slip out without being caught. When Hux slept through him using the facilities, seeing to his morning self-care routine, and putting his boots on, he decided he probably could.

He returned to find Hux awake and alarmed, sitting up in bed and having had enough time to transfer the bacta pads to his left hand. His face was much improved – the swelling around his eyes was gone and they hadn't even blacked, thanks to the bacta. His lips were normal as well and while his nose was probably still broken, it had at least begun to heal. All the lacerations on his face that had been under the bacta strips were gone.

"Hey," Poe said, carrying in a tray of food. "You're looking better."

Hux gave a shallow nod, staying where he was sitting on the bunk. He watched the hallway outside until the door slid shut behind Poe. Poe put the tray on the bed next to him. "I didn't know what you'd want, so I got a little of everything. How's your stomach?"

"Fine. I'd like painkillers first." He reached out to touch his right pinkie finger along the back of Poe's hand as though reassuring himself Poe was really there.

"Okay." Poe knelt next to the medpack and fished through it. "Your face looks a lot better."

"My hands still hurt."

Poe nodded. "Yeah, they're broken. They'll do that." He handed over some pills, which Hux balanced on the plastisynth of one hand.

"The swelling is down," Hux said, gingerly lipping the pills off his 'palm'.

"Good. Hopefully I can find a real doc for you today to help you out." He looked up at Hux, who had the pills held between his lips as he surveyed the food tray. "And … let me help you out right now," Poe said. He picked up a straw. "What do you want first? Juice, milk, caf, water?"

"Mm." Hux moved his hand toward the water. He couldn't speak without dropping the pills.

"Water, it is." He put in the straw and lifted it for Hux, who pulled the pills into his mouth and sucked from the straw to swallow them. Then he kept sucking, draining the entire glass. "Oh. You're … thirsty."

Hux nodded. "It doesn't hurt as much to drink or swallow, not as much as it did last night."

"The bruising on your throat looks worse," Poe observed, but understood it hurt less. "What do you want next? I can feed you scrambled eggs or oatmeal-"

"Juice, please."

Poe stuck the straw in it and raised the glass. Hux drained it as well, then grimaced and put a hand to his stomach. "Kriff," Poe muttered, looking around his room for anything mobile Hux could vomit in. "I shouldn't have let you do that."

"I'm fine," Hux said breathily. "The sink." He rose and walked to the tiny half-refresher.

Poe slapped the button to pull out the sink tray. Hux stood over it and panted. "Too much at once, huh?" Hux nodded. Poe leaned against the wall that separated the 'fresher area from the bed. To have something to say, Poe explained the device. "So, sink here, as you see. This button pulls out the toilet below. Use it as a urinal or a high squat toilet, depending on what you need. Cleaning wipes are here." He pointed. "Showers are communal at the end of the hall. There's a private room with a bath, but you have to reserve it if you want to have a soak."

Poe considered Hux's activities over the last day. "Have you … do you need to use the urinal?"

"Not yet. I did last night. In the shower, away from you, when you were washing yourself."

"Ah. That's what you were doing over there." Poe chuckled. "I wondered."

"I didn't want to impose."

"By asking me to help? I can, you know." Poe leaned forward until Hux gave him eye contact. "I can, okay?"

Hux nodded after a beat. "I don't think I'm going to throw up."

Poe nodded. "You want to just have a seat and let it settle?"

Hux nodded. They returned to the bed. "Can you put the caf somewhere that I can sip it?"

"Uh-huh." Poe moved the cup, with straw, to the shelf over the end of the bed. He moved the tray so Hux could slide down to the cup and take drinks as he felt comfortable. Poe took up his own caf and nibbled on the eggs as he talked. "We're on our way to Naboo at the moment. What little I heard was that Rey and Kylo have worked something out and they want to pitch it to what's left of the New Republic."

Hux grunted.

"I don't know if that will be the end of the war or not," Poe said, "but a lot of people are hungry for that to happen."

"I can imagine. What will you do if the war is over?"

"I don't know. Maybe go to Yavin and spend time with my dad. What about you? Do you have any family?" Poe remembered General Brendol Hux being mentioned in Armitage's bio, but he didn't know if the man was still around.

Hux shook his head and looked away. His lips pinched shut.

"You want to come with me?" Poe asked.

"To meet your father?"

"Yeah." Hux looked startled. "What," Poe asked, "it's okay to offer me sex, but too much to go meet my family and see if you like them?"

"Um … yes? That … that seems … what if they don't like me? Is it just your father, or are there others?"

"Just my father. The rest of my family is scattered around the galaxy. You don't have anyone? You're like Finn, no family?"

"No one that I know of." Hux shook his head in short, tight motions like before. His lips pinched again in the same expression.

"Okay. Is everyone in the First Order that way?"

Hux shook his head, then shrugged, all while looking away. "The troopers – they're all that way. No family aside from each other."

"And … who else is there?"

"The officers. Most of them know who they're related to."

"But you're an officer."

"I know who I'm related to."

"Are they dead?"

"I don't want to talk about it, Poe." By now, Hux was half turned away from him, highly averse to the subject.

"Okay. Hey, you know, I didn't ask, but would you like something in your caf?"

Hux turned back, seizing on the new subject. "Yes, sugar. Maybe a touch of milk to cool it."

Poe doctored the drink and replaced it. "Don't drink that stuff too fast. Sometimes the cafeteria caf is weak, but not today. That _will_ turn your stomach."

Hux sighed. "Yes, perhaps I should take in something other than liquids …" He glanced at the food.

Poe loaded up a fork with what was left of the eggs. "If you'd mentioned these earlier, I wouldn't have already eaten most of them."

"You have to eat, too. And the less chewing I do, the better." But Hux took the forkful of eggs anyway.

Poe switched to the oatmeal. "Teeth still hurting you?"

Hux nodded, but didn't speak. He occupied his mouth with eating until half the bowl was gone. Hux said, "That's enough. Thank you. I don't think I can handle much more."

Poe put down the spoon and petted Hux's shoulder. Hux turned toward him, eyed him, and then leaned in to slide both forearms along Poe's sides and rest his head on his shoulder. Poe hugged him in return. For a while, they just sat together as Poe reflected on how touch-starved Hux must be. It was something else Finn had mentioned about being in the Order – the sense of isolation even while crowded among others. Poe stroked his back slowly.

Eventually, Hux said, "I do have to use the refresher now."

Poe snickered. "Yeah, I knew that was coming. Especially after you downed two full glasses and made some progress on your caf."

Hux stood and said with resignation, "It makes me reconsider if perhaps my hands should have been my first priority for healing."

"I could take you down the hall to the showers again."

Hux answered by moving to the refresher and hitting the right button to bring out the toilet. He worked at the fastening of his pants with his thumbs.

Poe came over and leaned against the other wall, watching to see if he needed to help. "Let me know what you want me to do here. I'm not going to go grabbing at you. You're probably still sore and bruised down there."

"I am. Just make sure … Actually, I think I can do this." Hux sounded cheered by being able to maintain this small amount of dignity. He'd managed to catch the loose pants on his thighs by spraddling them. He pushed down the underwear and aimed himself carefully. "I couldn't have done this without being able to see, so maybe it was the right choice after all."

Poe turned his head to watch the far side of the room while Hux urinated unassisted. He offered a cleaning wipe when Hux was done and helped get his clothes back up, as pulling them up put more strain on his hands than pushing them down. Hux stood still while Poe used another wipe to clean the edges of the plastisynth and anywhere he'd touched himself.

They were close. Poe felt Hux's eyes on him and looked up into that steady gaze. Hux had pretty eyes now that Poe could see them – a greenish-grey that contrasted with the delicate gold of his lashes and burnished bronze of his brows. His hair was fluffy and still in delightful disarray from the bed. The tip of Hux's tongue appeared between his lips as his gaze dropped to Poe's mouth. Poe tilted his head up. Who needed Force powers to read someone's mind when the other's thoughts were so clear? He rocked forward slowly, leaning toward Hux, pursing his lips slightly, waiting for the inevitable …

"Can you help me brush my teeth?" Hux asked.

Poe grinned, blushed, and dropped his head. He rocked back and sighed. "That was so close," he muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing. Yes, yes I can." Poe chewed his lips in an attempt to fix his face. He opened a drawer and pulled things out. He looked at the main cleaning implement, then at Hux. "Um … Hang on a second. I need to scout out the territory before jumping in there. You're missing two teeth, right?"

"Yes. And I have a laceration on my gums above it."

"The bacta didn't fix that?"

"It was deep enough to gouge out my teeth. No, the bacta didn't fix that. It only healed my lip, which helps, but there's still an injury."

"Ah. Okay. Let me see?"

Hux opened his mouth. Poe carefully peeled back his upper lip. "Oh, I see it. Kriff. Any other cuts in here? What's this?" Hux moved his tongue over and prodded the injured spot in his cheek Poe was referring to, then made a questioning sound. "Yeah, that," Poe told him.

Hux pulled back and said, "That was worse yesterday. There was no bacta pad across my cheek in that area. It doesn't diffuse well. That's why it's usually administered in tanks or baths."

"Okay. You said your other teeth were hurting you. I'm assuming some of them are loose. You sure this is a good idea?"

"Yes." Hux's voice was firm.

Poe eyed him, thinking about the timing. He'd been so sure Hux was about to make a move. "Is this so you can kiss me?"

Hux looked abruptly to the cleaning tools. He nudged one with the plastisynth of his hand brace and didn't look at Poe. "Perhaps I just don't want my mouth tasting like blood all day."

"Uh-huh." Poe picked up the tool, applied paste, and lifted it. "Well then. Let's get to it. Give me your best snarl. I'll be gentle." Hux complied. Poe worked carefully and without any hurry. When he was done and Hux had rinsed, Poe was waiting. He was leaned against the wall again, looking up at Hux. He'd been right – once the swelling was down and he was cleaned up, the guy looked hot.

Hux straightened and moved closer to him. Poe drew in a deep breath and tilted his head back, resting it against the wall. Hux nudged Poe's knee with his own as he moved between Poe's legs. Hux moved his right hand to rest his thumb on Poe's shoulder. The tip of his tongue appeared between his lips again as Hux leaned in, letting his mouth open slightly. Poe's lips parted. His eyes were hooded. His hands were resting lightly on Hux's hips.

Hux touched his lips to Poe's – carefully, delicately. Poe had just seen the inside of the guy's mouth. He couldn't answer this passionately. He had to wait. He had to let Hux set the pace. He had to be tender and gentle. He touched his tongue to Hux's lip and was delighted by Hux's quick intake of breath and the way the man leaned into him, working out how much pressure he was comfortable with. Hux's left arm circled Poe's waist, where he pulled them together with the hesitation of someone who hadn't done this before.

Poe smiled and left Hux's mouth to kiss along his cheek. Hux shuddered and mumbled, "This. Yes, I- This. I should have-"

Poe curled his arms around Hux's body – one high between his shoulder blades and the other low over his ass. He held him steady against him as Poe nibbled Hux's ear and the soft, smooth skin behind and under it. Hux moaned quietly. He was erect. He pushed his pelvis against Poe once and then stopped tensely.

"I'm not ready," Hux said after a beat.

Poe gave him a light peck on the neck. "That's not surprising considering they kicked you in the nuts, maybe more than once. It's okay." Poe moved his lower hand up to the small of Hux's back, rubbing a slow circle there. "You're sore, right?"

"Yes. My apologies."

"No problem. Is it anything worse than that?"

Hux shook his head.

Poe brought one hand between them and steered Hux's mouth back to his own. He kissed him gently. "There's no hurry. I like this. Just this. It's sweet."

Hux nodded, sighed, and rested his forehead against Poe's. "There are other things you could do."

"I've seen the inside of your mouth. You're not ready there, either."

"There are _other things_ …"

Poe grinned. "You're a persistent guy. I know, babe. Have you ever done that?"

"I-, I- No. I said so. I've not … done any of this."

"Okay. I'm not going to rush into anything here. We have plenty of time. Like I said yesterday, it's not a rejection. Doing anything that hurts you is not something I'm into."

"It will hurt?"

"Uh … no. Not necessarily. Not when it's done right. But you can't even get off right now. We'll give it a few days."

Hux nodded and kissed him again, like he'd intended it to be brief, but then Poe captured his head and urged him to stay. They kissed until their lips were tired. As they finally parted, Poe asked, "Do you feel a little better now?"

"Yes."

"Good."


End file.
